1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to ligament fixation devices and in particular to endosteal fixation arrangements for use with bone tendon bone grafts for use as replacements for an anterior or posterior cruciate ligament.
2. Prior Art
In recent years a number of systems and apparatus have been developed for use in arthroscopic surgical procedures involving repair or replacement of knee anterior or posterior cruciate ligaments. The present inventor is the inventor or joint inventor of a number of such systems, including a number of endosteal systems. Specifically, the applicant is the coinventor of U.S. Pat. No. 4,772,286, in a first or pioneer endosteal ligament anchor system, that was followed by U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,870,957 and 4,997,433, and a method patent, U.S. Pat. No. 4,927,421, all of which involve endosteal ligament anchor arrangements. Also, a currently pending U.S. patent application, Ser. No. 07/511,761, entitled "Endosteal Ligament Retainer and Process", is a further ligament anchor system. Unlike the present invention, none of which earlier endosteal ligament attachment arrangements teach or anticipate an arrangement for fitting a plurality of flexing barbs or pins to extend outwardly from a bone end of a bone tendon graft that is for installation, as a ligament replacement into a prepared ligament tunnel, the barbs or pins for flexing into a bone endosteum at the tunnel end endosteally locking that bone end therein.
Additional endosteal fixation device arrangements are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,537,185, to Stednitz and 4,950,270 to Bowman, et al, both showing a set screw mounting; with U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,301,551 to Dore, et al, and 4,744,793, to Parr, showing wedge type ligament mounting arrangements, and a patent to Czajka U.S. Pat. No. 4,605,414 shows a bone wedge anchor arrangement. None of which involve an endosteal mounting for securing flexing barbs or pins to a bone end of a bone tendon bone graft that is like that of the present invention.